The Wall Street Journal – EU Ministers Resume Crisis Talks European Union finance ministers resumed their meeting Tuesday amid rising concern that a proposed deal to restructure Greece’s private-sector debt won’t be enough to put the country back on a firm fiscal footing. The International Monetary Fund and the euro zone’s four triple-A-rated countries—Germany, the… Continue reading Europe
Real Time Economics (WSJ Blog) – What’s Going on With Debt in U.S.? As we reported recently a new McKinsey Global Institute report says the U.S. economy is further along the deleveraging curve than a lot of other big, rich economies One of the biggest questions hanging over the U.S. economy now is how much… Continue reading Deleveraging
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – All’s Quiet on the Dow. Too Quiet? It’s an eerie calm. After last year’s gut-wrenching swings, U.S. stocks have been surprisingly tranquil in 2012. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has moved less than 100 points on all but one day this year. And most… Continue reading Where Have All The Traders Gone?
The Wall Street Journal – Irwin Kelner: Fed’s forecasting reputation shaky The Federal Reserve has misinterpreted more than once developments that were already underway — much less those that lay ahead. At the conclusion of this week’s meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed is expected to reveal its members’ innermost thoughts and… Continue reading Federal Reserve Forecasts
Debka.com (India Blog) – India to pay gold instead of dollars for Iranian oil. Oil and gold markets stunned India is the first buyer of Iranian oil to agree to pay for its purchases in gold instead of the US dollar, debkafile’s intelligence and Iranian sources report exclusively. Those sources expect China to follow suit.… Continue reading Using Gold As A Currency
<Click on chart for larger image> The Financial Times – Look to history for profitable stockpicking The growth, proliferation and popularity of exchange traded funds has had consequences not all of which are beneficial. Today investors need no longer discern and analyse the differences between Exxon and Chevron since the Energy Select Sector ETF provides… Continue reading ETFs
The Financial Times – Equities can outperform bonds in a liquidity trap Since a liquidity trap is such a distinctive economic condition, we might expect that relative asset market returns might also be very clear cut. For government bonds, that should indeed be the case. Bond yields should drop to the lower limit implied by… Continue reading Examining Stocks vs. Bonds In A High Liquidity World
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Comment Jim Bianco was on CNBC discussing his outlook for the markets along with Russ Koesterich, Global Chief Investment Strategist at BlackRock’s iShares Group. To view the interview click on the picture above. To view any of our recent interviews click here.
Reuters – Bernanke near inflation target prize, but jobs a concern The Federal Reserve could take the historic step this week of announcing an explicit target for inflation, a move that would fulfill a multi-year quest of the central bank’s chairman, Ben Bernanke. An inflation target would be the capstone of Bernanke’s crusade to improve… Continue reading The Federal Reserve Meets This Week
Bloomberg.com – Draghi Makes Euro Favorite for Most-Profitable Carry Trades With Rate Cuts Betting against the euro may be the most profitable trade in the foreign-exchange market as policy efforts to stave off a European recession debases the currency. Borrowing in euros and investing in the currencies of Australia, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa and South… Continue reading Europe
<Click on chart for larger image> The Wall Street Journal – Gingrich Reshapes Landscape South Carolina Win Upsets Contest, Puts Romney on Defense as Florida Looms Newt Gingrich’s surprise thumping of Mitt Romney in the South Carolina Republican primary sets the stage for a prolonged and potentially messy fight to determine who will lead the… Continue reading An Update On Romney’s Collapse